Classifying for the World Cup is an emotional roller coaster for most soccer fans, but in 2018, that was especially true for Peruvians, who hadn’t seen their country compete on the world stage in over three decades. What did it take for Peru to qualify for the biggest event in world soccer? Peruvian fan and writer Toño Angulo Daneri believes it might have all boiled down to an unlikely good luck charm: his 4-year-old son’s favorite toy.

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Martina: In June of 2018, 32 teams from around the world met in Russia to face off for the biggest competition in soccer… or as it’s known in Latin America and much of the rest of the world: “fútbol.” The competition was the World Cup, or la Copa Mundial. Peruvian writer and journalist Toño Angulo Daneri hadn’t seen his country play since 1982, when he was just 12-years old.

Martina: Peru tied its first game against Cameroon, and then again against the powerhouse team from Italy. Peru’s third game, against Poland, would define whether they’d go on to the next round. Peru lost five to one.

Martina: Little did Toño know then that he’d have to wait 36 years before he’d get to cheer for Perú in another World Cup. For Toño, it’s clear what ended his country’s decades-long losing streak...

Toño: Naranjito: el juguete favorito de mi hijo.

Martina: His son’s favorite toy.

Toño: Y claro que sí, lo llevé a Rusia conmigo.

Martina: Welcome to the Duolingo Spanish Podcast — I’m your host Martina Castro. Each episode we bring you fascinating first-person stories from Spanish speakers across the world. The storyteller will be using intermediate Spanish and I will be chiming in for context, in English. But these are not language lessons, they're real life lessons through language.

Martina: Toño has a theory as to why fútbol fans love the sport so much.

Martina: Every four years since he was a kid, Toño thinks back on that 1982 World Cup in Spain. As soon as the playoffs—or eliminatorias—begin for a new World Cup, he starts to dream again. Perú in the World Cup… Perú en el Mundial.

Martina: It was a cardboard box full of kids’ books, board games, photos, postcards, and novels. Since they knew the three of them loved fútbol, Toño’s friends also included a fútbol-themed gift.

Toño: Era un coche de juguete.

Martina:: A toy car.

Toño: Tenía el logo de Naranjito, una naranja con una gran sonrisa.

Martina: That orange with the big smile was the mascot for the 1982 World Cup. Each world cup has a mascot, like the Olympics. And this little car was an original souvenir from that world cup when Perú’s dreams were shattered.

Martina: Gabriel also loves fútbol. In the evenings, after getting home from work, Toño and his wife take Gabriel to the park and kick around the soccer ball. Toño says realizing his son loved to play his favorite sport was like a gift.

Martina:At that moment, Toño thought back to a lesson his own father taught him, to help him see that winning isn’t everything in fútbol. When they would watch Perú play, sometimes Toño’s dad would encourage him to cheer for the other team.

Martina: But the thing is… when it comes seeing your team play in the World Cup, winning does start to matter. Because, if your team doesn’t qualify, they don’t go. So when the 2018 World Cup playoffs began, the “eliminatorias,” Toño was watching closely.

Martina: It was always that way. Since Toño lived in Spain, games that started at 9 p.m. in Peru aired at 4 in the morning in Madrid. That morning, as he prepared to watch the game against Ecuador, for some reason Toño decided to watch with Naranjito as his good luck charm.

Toño: Quiero aclarar... no soy supersticioso.

Martina: Well, at least he’s not superstitious in the traditional sense of the word.

Martina: And as Peru continued to win, Toño’s friends in Madrid would insist he go out and watch the games with them in bars that stayed open into the early hours of the morning. Toño was hesitant to do this.

Martina:Toño’s joy reminded him that no matter how far he was from his country, he still belonged to that tribe of Peruvians losing their minds with pride that night. And through him, his son belongs to it, too.

Martina:The pressure of 36 years without qualifying for the World Cup could've been enough to make Perú falter in that decisive game. But it didn't. Perú won 2 to 0, becoming the final nation to qualify for la Copa Mundial.

Martina:What matters is Perú was going to Russia, and so was he. Toño managed to get assigned to cover the World Cup as a journalist… but his main motivation was to be there to cheer for his team in person.

Martina: Of course, we all know what happened. Peru lost the first two games…meaning they didn’t get past the first stage. But the team had to play one last game before heading home, even though they had no chance of moving forward in the competition.

Martina: Toño Angulo Daneri is a journalist and author. His most recent book is "Perdonen la alegría (treinta y seis años después)".

Martina: If you liked this story, we’d love it if you shared it with your friends who are also learning Spanish. Send them a link to podcast.duolingo.com. There, you can find a transcript of this story and the rest of the episodes. Subscribe at Apple podcasts or your favorite listening app, so you never miss one. With over 200 million members, Duolingo is the world's largest online language learning platform and the most downloaded education app in the world. Duolingo believes that everyone should have access to education of the highest quality for free. Learn more at duolingo.com. I'm Martina Castro, gracias por escuchar.